


home is wherever i’m with you

by adrianthealien



Category: The Hollow (Cartoon)
Genre: M/M, adam has self esteem issues, also trigger warning for first chapter, basically just headcanons on their home life and other things, i rlly hope this is good enough, im clueless lol, ive never written angst before, kai has a problem with anxiety, kaidam if you squint, mira is lonely, so please don’t read it if you don’t think you can handle it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-17
Updated: 2018-07-23
Packaged: 2019-06-11 18:11:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,973
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15321309
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/adrianthealien/pseuds/adrianthealien
Summary: everybody’s home life isn’t the best, but at least they have each other.adam hates his mom.mira hates the silence.kai hates the lack of control and noise.





	1. adam

**Author's Note:**

> trigger warning for chapter 1!!! adam gets slightly abused. if you don’t think you can handle that, please don’t read it! stay safe, i don’t want anyone to get hurt or something like that. ❤️

“That’s a little rude, don’t ‘ya think?” Kai asked, popping a lifesaver into his mouth.

“No, it’s not,” Adam glared, grabbing the lifesavers from his hand.

“Hey! I was eating those!” Kai protested, leaning over to grab back at the candy.

“They’re mine!” Adam shot back, raising the candy into the air and out of Kai’s reach.

“Shut up!” Mira interrupted loudly, causing Adam’s big, black Newfoundland to get off Mira’s lap and leave the living room.

Mira grabbed the remote and paused the movie. She stood up from the couch and began to stretch.

“Since you guys insist on talking through the movie then we should just stop watching it altogether,” Mira sighed and plopped back onto the couch.

Adam clutched his black _The Hollow_ t-shirt, feeling anxious. He set the lifesavers down and slid them back towards Kai.

Kai looked at the candy apprehensively before hesitantly taking it and giving Adam a worried look.

“Hey,” Mira placed a reassuring hand on Adam’s shoulder, making him flinch slightly, “what’s got you so worked up?”

“It’s his mom,” Kai answered, then looked at Adam, “right?” Kai subconsciously scooted a bit closer to him.

Adam took a deep breath in and let it out shakily. He nodded.

“You go there every weekend, why are you just now feeling like this?” Kai tried to make his voice sound calm but he was completely clueless to the situation.

Adam looked up at Kai with a pained expression then looked to Mira. He breathed in again then let it out, trying to calm his nerves.

“I’m not— It’s not—“ Adam couldn’t figure out how to phrase it correctly.

_I’m afraid of my mother._

_She’s always been like this._

_I never want to see her again._

_I feel defenseless._

_I feel useless._

_Anything_ would work, but Adam couldn’t manage to tell the truth.

Instead, “I— I need to pack my bag.” Adam got out of Mira’s grip, quickly walking out of the room and up the stairs to his bedroom. 

Mira and Kai exchanged worried glances. They both cleaned up their mess in the living room without speaking, then hesitantly went home. 

Adam heard the front door open and close from up in his room and Adam cringed, realizing he hadn’t said goodbye or anything.

He grabbed his phone and sent a short ‘ _see you on monday_ ’ text to their group chat before setting the phone down and throwing an arm over his face.

He totally broke down back there, it was embarrassing.

 _They wouldn’t understand_ , Adam thought, but then he shook his head.

_Yes, they would. They’re my friends._

_Stop kidding yourself._

“Shut up,” Adam said softly, his voice was shaky and his breathing was uneven.

_You’re talking to yourself. That’s weird._

“Shut up!” Adam snapped, rubbing his eyes furiously. 

“You’re talking to yourself, kiddo.” Adam sat up quickly and stared at his father, formally known as Mr. Reyes, in the doorway, a concerned expression on his face.

Mr. Reyes had his hand on the doorknob and the hallway light was bleeding into Adam’s extremely dark bedroom.

The light illuminated Adam’s tear-stained face, prompting his father to sit by his side. He set a reassuring hand on Adam’s shoulder just as Mira had before. It again caught Adam off guard, making him flinch.

“Hey... did something happen with—“ His father started to ask but Adam cut him off, wiping his face of tears.

“No, Dad, now isn’t the time,” Adam said weakly, slightly leaning into his father’s comforting touch. 

“Will you tell me what’s wrong?” Mr. Reyes tread lightly, careful to not upset Adam even more. 

Adam looked up at his father, apprehensively. They sat in silence for what felt like hours, when in reality, it was only a couple of minutes.

Adam finally gave him a quiet, “...No.”

Mr. Reyes clenched his hand slightly in surprise and Adam didn’t fail to notice the small twitch. He felt bad, but only clutched his shirt anxiously, avoiding eye contact.

“I want you to you to know...” He started.

“...That I can tell you anything that’s bothering me. I know, Dad,” Adam finished, knowing the sentence by heart. 

“Well,” His father put his hands on his knees then pushed himself up to stand, “are you ready to go?”

Adam nodded, grabbing his backpack full of clothes and other essentials, slinging it over his shoulder.

Adam noticed that his phone lit up with a message from either Kai or Mira, he wasn’t sure, but either way, he ignored it and closed his bedroom door behind him.

Adam never brung his phone to his mother’s house. He didn’t trust any of his personal belongings near her and for good reason. 

It’s not like Adam had anything to hide or something like that, he just knew she wouldn’t like him talking to Kai or Mira.

To say Adam’s mother hated Kai and Mira was an understatement, she _despised_ them.

Adam’s mother wasn’t too happy about Adam’s decision to play _The Hollow_ in the first place, but when she saw Kai and Mira, that was it. 

She had made it very clear how much she didn’t like them the weekend after Kai, Mira, and him had won the game. 

His mother complained about how Kai was the most annoying person she’d ever seen and how she felt bad that he had held his team back so much. 

Adam always had to sit there and listen because he couldn’t let himself lash out at her. 

As much as she hated Kai, she hated Mira even more, mainly for the stunt she had pulled with kissing Adam out of the blue (which Adam had gotten over long ago). 

It made Adam absolutely livid, but he couldn’t stand up to his mother, he just _couldn’t_.

Adam snapped out of his thoughts and rolled down his window, breathing in the cold night air.

The wind in his face made him feel slightly better but there was still lingering anxiety all around him, making him sick.

The drive to his mother’s place was long and silent, which was never the case previously. 

Adam’s father always had something to say and a joke always at hand, just in case the situation needed it. 

He would talk to Adam the whole car ride and Adam would respond and laugh as if nothing was wrong, but the harsh reality was, there was something seriously wrong and Adam’s father had no idea what it was. That scared him.

Adam had almost fallen asleep when the car came to a stop, making Adam jump. 

“Man, you’re jumpy today, kiddo,” Adam’s father commented, smiling softly. Adam shrugged and grabbed his bag, stepping out of the car. 

Mr. Reyes also stepped out of the car and got in the way of Adam, making Adam halt.

“Dad, I—“ Adam started to speak but was cut off by a hug. Hesitantly, Adam hugged back.

“Will you please tell me what’s wrong?” He whispered, knowing that Adam’s mother was quite possibly watching them through the blinds. 

Adam’s father had a hunch about what was wrong and if he was right, he needed and wanted to do something about it. 

Adam opened his mouth to speak but stopped himself when he noticed curious eyes peering through the blinds, just as his father had expected. 

“N—no...” Adam choked out and broke up the hug.

His father’s suspicions were confirmed when he turned and noticed the peering eyes just as they disappeared. 

“Bye,” Adam said simply, keeping his eyes glued to the gravel pathway leading up to the front door. 

Adam didn’t look back as he raised his hand to knock, but instead, the door opened and Adam was faced with an unimpressed mother.

Shyly, Adam stepped in and closed the door behind him, his anxiety rising quickly.

“‘Evening, ma,” he said taking his shoes off by the door, clutching his backpack straps in a death grip.

“Where is your jacket? You know I hate it when you go outside without one,” She commented.

 _Great. We’re off to a great start._ Adam flinched. 

“It’s not cold out there, ma,” Adam defended himself, his voice was weak, however. 

“Adam, I want you to listen to me—“ Adam’s mother moved towards Adam and his stomach twisted in knots. 

“Ma, I’m really tired, I’m just gonna—“ Adam tried to move past her towards the stairs and just when he thought he made it, his mother grabbed his wrist.

“Adam,” she said sternly.

“Yes, ma?” Adam was unmoving, looking at anything but her.

“Look at me, now,” Adam’s mother tighten her grip slightly and Adam winced, obeying her immediately.

“I will not have you disobeying me in this household,”

“Ma, that hurts,” Adam weakly interjected, only making her tighten her grip.

“Don’t interrupt me. You are not in that silly game anymore, you will never be as strong as you were,” She continued, grabbing Adam’s wrists as hard as she could in an effort to intimidate him and it was working.

Adam didn’t dare show any emotion other than the occasional flinch. He _had_ to prove to her that he wasn’t weak. He was _not_ weak.

“I hope you cherished that strength while you had it,” She spat, “because you will never be that strong.”

Adam sucked in a breath, trying to block out her words and the pain.

“As long as you are under my roof, you will listen to me,” His mother let go of Adam’s wrists and he immediately recoiled away from her. “Go.” 

Adam didn’t hesitate and sprinted up the stairs to his make-shift bedroom. 

He threw his backpack on the ground and plopped down onto the bed. 

Adam didn’t need to look at his wrists, he knew they would bruise, without a doubt. 

Sighing, Adam scanned the room, rubbing his wrists subconsciously. His eyes fell on his backpack across the room. 

He was really regretting his decision to not bring his phone, Adam had enough and really wanted to leave. 

It’s not like Adam could just escape the house and run home. 

_God, why does she have to live three towns over?_ Adam thought, angrily.

Adam lied back on the uncomfortable mattress and stared at the ceiling, in silence. 

He kept thinking about the phone and what he should’ve done instead of just standing and staring at his mother like a wimp.

Adam was drifting off into sleep when he shot up in realization. He quickly stumbled off the bed and crawled across the floor towards his backpack. 

Unzipping a small pocket, he pulled out a barely working flip phone. Adam’s father was a worrier and had bought the flip phone in case Adam wanted to talk to him at his mother’s house. 

_Perfect._

He punched in the numbers for his dad’s cellphone and shakily held it to his ear as the phone began to ring. 

Adam watched the door carefully, impatiently waiting for his father to answer.

“Adam?” The man on the other line asked as he picked up. 

Adam had never felt more relieved. He let out a shaky “dad”.

“Adam?” He asked again, “Are you okay?”

“Dad, I—“ Adam’s joy was short lived as he noticed a pair of feet pass under the door.

Adam fumbled with the phone in a panic and hung up before diving into the bed and covering himself with the covers like a five-year-old scared of thunder.

 _You’re a coward._ Adam was too tired and frightened to listen. He fell asleep before he could tell if his mother heard him or not.

She did. The next day, she gave him hell for it. Adam only avoided her eyes and nodded, doing anything she asked. 

By the time Adam had to go home, there were some very visible bruises on his wrists. He threw on an old, black hoodie and called it good. 

On the bright side, it pleased his mother to see him with a jacket on, but Adam had no desire to please her anymore. 

Adam’s mother gave him a hug, to which Adam did not return, and sent him on his way. 

The car ride home wasn’t much different from the car ride to his mother’s house.  
Adam’s father was noticeably concerned and was anxious to confront Adam about why he had called him.

“So...” Adam’s father began.

“I don’t want to hear it, dad,” Adam bit the inside of his cheek, as if he was scared that he would spill everything if he said anything else.

He ignored Adam’s protest and pressed forward, “I haven’t seen you wear that hoodie in years.” Adam’s father laughed nervously.

 _Wow, the nerve this man has!_ Adam thought, _he really has to nerve to laugh at a time like this._

 _It’s not his fault, he doesn’t know_ , another side of Adam argued, his rational side.

_And who’s fault is that?_

Adam was furious. “Shut up,” He said aloud, gritting his teeth.

“Kiddo, you’re really worrying me,” His father noted, “you’re talking to yourself again. Can you tell me what’s wrong?” He asked for the third time. 

There was a long silence before Adam finally gave in, “when we get home,” Adam had said, at least that’s what he promised.

That didn’t stop Adam from trying to bolt up the stairs as soon as they both walked into the door. 

Adam went into panic mode when Adam’s father grabbed his wrist to stop him from running away.

_They’re all the same!_

_Get out of there!_

_Don’t let him hurt you too!_

However, Adam didn’t listen and all that came out of his mouth was a choked sob and a soft “ouch”.

Adam’s father immediately let go once he realized what he’d done. 

“Adam,” He said, calmly, “Adam, please come here.” Adam’s father carefully put his arms around Adam and this time, Adam didn’t bother to put up a fight.

Adam’s father let him sob into his shirt, not minding if it was ruined. He gently rolled up Adam’s sleeves, shocked at the bruises left by, more than likely, his mother. 

Before he could comment on them, Adam managed to choke out the name “Kai”. 

“You want... you want Kai?” Adam’s father asked to make sure. Adam didn’t answer and choked out Mira’s name as well.

“Adam, it’s late, I don’t know if—“ Adam cut him off, trying to steady his breathing, “dad, _please_.” 

His father reached for his phone that was set on a side table nearby and called Adam’s friends. If what Mr. Reyes was saying wasn’t worrying enough, Adam’s audible sobs in the background were probably enough to raise some worries.

He hung up the phone and managed to get Adam to sit on the couch, however, that was the least of his problems.

Adam gasped for air and his father had to remind him to breath.

“Adam, you’re hyperventilating. Please, breathe, your friends will tell you the same thing,” He stated.

Adam nodded and tried to follow a breathing technique he learned in a health class years ago. 

Every now and then, Adam couldn’t help but let out a hiccup, but for the most part, his breathing began to steady.

There was a knock at the door and Adam’s anxiety skyrocketed.

“Shit,” Adam mumbled under his breath.

“Watch your mouth, kiddo,” His father warned as he opened the door to two very worried looking teenagers. 

“Is Adam okay?” Mira asked quickly. 

“Did something happen to him?” Kai asked straight after. 

Adam tried to stay out of view, he was embarrassed. He grabbed a throw pillow and hugged it tightly, rolling his sleeves back down.

“Kids, I don’t know if you’ll understand but—“ Mira shoved past him and made her way towards Adam. 

Kai laughed nervously, “Sorry, Mr. Reyes...” He shrugged and let Kai in.

“Adam! You nearly scared us half to death!” Mira exclaimed as she sat down next to the still hiccuping Adam. 

“Yeah, I’ve never heard you cry before, man, what’s up?” Kai asked softly, also taking a seat next to Adam so that he was in between the two of them.

Adam stared at the two, not letting himself burst into tears again. He lightly tapped his wrists and Mira took that as an invitation to roll up his sleeves. 

“Adam...” Mira was shocked, “is this why...” she trailed off but he knew what she meant to say.

Kai lightly tapped Adam’s shoulder to grab his attention. 

“Do you mind if I...?” Kai pointed down to his other wrist. Adam shook his head and Kai carefully rolled up his other sleeve. 

The bruises hurt like hell but Mira and Kai were trying their best to handle it carefully so Adam could hardly bring himself to care. 

Mira took Adam’s hand in hers and Kai did the same with Adam’s other hand. Without thinking, Adam immediately squeezed Kai’s hand. Adam realized what he did and refused to look at Kai, embarrassed. 

Adam didn’t even need to be prompted, he trusted Mira and Kai with his life, so confessing everything that had happened at his mother’s house didn’t feel that difficult anymore. 

“That’s awful, Adam, I can’t believe you never told us this,” Mira was still in shock.

“I was scared,” Adam said simply.

“You can’t go back there!” Kai exclaimed, then looked to Adam’s father who was on the phone with someone, “Mr. Reyes, you can’t make him!” 

Mr. Reyes nodded but didn’t say anything, heading into the kitchen.

“Adam, truly, you’re the strongest person I know,” Mira smiled and pulled him into a quick hug. When Mira pulled back, she let go of his hand.

Adam took a chance and looked at Kai, who was smiling as well. He also pulled him into a hug, surprising Adam. 

“I’m glad you’re okay, buddy,” Kai sounded a bit pained but Adam chose to ignore it. They pulled apart but neither pulled their hand away. 

“I can’t even imagine how you must feel right now,” Mira started, “how long has this been going on?” 

Adam hummed thoughtfully but he truthfully didn’t know, he weakly shrugged and said, “She’s never actually hurt me before now...” 

“That doesn’t make it okay!” Kai interjected. Mira agreed.

“It’s just— I don’t know. She’s always given my sister and I a hard time, think that’s why my dad divorced her,” Adam explained. He’s never been so happy that his sister was away at a sleep away camp. He would never wish this upon her.

“Serves her right,” Mira mumbled.  
Adam let out a small genuine laugh, even though he wasn’t in the mood for jokes right now. 

_I told you they care_ , he told himself, _at least they think you’re strong_. Adam began to get lost in his thoughts until Kai pulled him out of his trance with a squeeze of his hand. 

Mira noticed immediately. 

“You okay?” She asked.

“Mm, just tired,” Adam said lazily, in all honesty, he’d never been more tired. He felt like he hadn’t slept peacefully in so long, and he hadn’t.

He’d always stay up late thinking about things he could’ve done differently that day and talking to himself (pretty negatively not to mention), which was pretty embarrassing but it was the truth. 

“Yeah, we’ve got that, you’ve dozed off like five times since we got here,” Kai commented, letting go of Adam’s hand. He was too tired to notice. 

Kai got up to talk to Mr. Reyes, leaving Adam alone with Mira.

“Adam,” she said, “I hope you don’t judge yourself too harshly on this.”

“Too late,” Adam sighed.

“Adam...” Mira began but Adam didn’t let her finish.

“Mira, it’s okay, I’m sure the worst is over now,” Adam said it as if he was unsure. 

“Yeah, your dad doesn’t seem too happy,” Kai said as he walked back into the living room. Adam smiled.

“Mira, we gotta go,” Kai turned his attention towards Mira, sounding as hesitant as Mira looked. 

The expression on her face was something along the lines of ‘ _are you sure?_ ’

“Yeah, I want to go to sleep and I can’t do that if you’re both fussing over me,” Adam let a small grin spread across his face.

When they tried to protest, Adam waved them off, telling them he’d be fine and he’d text them in the morning.

Yeah, he’ll be okay.


	2. mira

“It’s an emergency, Kai!” Mira exclaimed as she fell dramatically onto her bed, as if Kai would even see it.

“Mira, you aren’t going to starve if I don’t—“ Kai paused and a scream was heard in the background, causing Mira to sit up abruptly.

“Kai, are you okay?” Mira asked, concerned.

“Y—yeah, my mom’s home, I’ll be right over,” Kai quickly hung up the phone, leaving Mira confused.

She shrugged and texted Adam, asking if he wanted to come over as well. 

_The more people here, the better_ , Mira thought. 

Mira’s mother had been gone all day and had just sent Mira a text explaining that she’d be home late... again. 

Mira’s mother, Mrs. Brewer to her associates, worked often, leaving Mira home alone.

It’s not like Mira couldn’t take care of herself, it’s just that Mira _hated_ being by herself.

When Mira heard the word ‘fun’, she immediately thought of a night out with her friends and making new ones while she’s at it.

And being home alone by herself? That’s exactly opposite of what Mira wants to be doing.

Mira pushed herself off her bed and sifted through her box of albums, looking for something to listen to. 

Many of the albums Mira owned were old and she didn’t like their music anymore.   
Mira sighed and rolled her eyes.

“I need to remember to throw out these old albums... or give them away... or something,” Mira spoke to herself as she picked up her phone to text Adam again. 

Adam knew exactly what music Mira liked, mostly because it was the same thing he liked.

Before Mira could even press send, there was a knock on the front door, making Mira fumble with her phone before stumbling down her large staircase.

Mira was expecting Kai to be the one behind the door, since he lived closer to her than Adam did.

However, when she opened the door, Kai was there but he was laughing along with Adam, who presumably had said something funny.

Adam had his hands hidden behind his back which initially worried Mira. 

Mira and Kai had been slightly more protective over Adam after what happened the week before, and Adam absolutely hated how he was getting treated.

Adam and Kai stopped laughing when they noticed Mira, however, their smiles didn’t fall from their faces.

“Hey Mira, your personal cook is here,” Kai grinned, laughing at his own stupid joke.

“And I brought something you might like too,” Adam added, holding out a new album, also giving Mira a genuine grin.

“Aw, Adam!” Mira exclaimed, it was amazing how well they knew each other.   
Before Adam could even react, Mira had jumped him with a hug, that even surprised Kai.

Adam winced, letting out a small whimper.

“Mira... wrists... ouch...” was all that Adam could muster before Mira quickly let go.

Everyone’s smile melted right off their faces and the three stood in silence. 

It was excruciating, and all her fault. 

_How can you say you feel bad for him when you just hurt him?_ Mira asked herself. 

_It was an accident_ , another part of Mira thoughts responded. She didn’t let it bother her too much.

Adam let out a sigh. 

“I don’t need you guys feeling bad for me anymore, I can handle myself,” Adam said, breaking the silence, though he didn’t sound angry, just distant.

Adam took both Mira’s and Kai’s hands in his and squeezed them before letting go and giving them a weak smile.

“I’ll be okay, I promise, I don’t want to dwell on this,” he spoke with a hopeful glint in his eyes, “now, can we please get to this? I’m hungry,” Adam added, glancing at Kai. 

Kai seemed busy staring at the ground, or was he staring at where him and Adam’s hands were? Mira couldn’t be sure.

“O-oh, right, yeah!” Kai snapped out of his trance and lightly shoved past Mira and into the kitchen. 

Adam and Mira met eyes and stared at each other for a moment before laughing and heading into the living room to dance their hearts out until the soundtrack ended or Kai interrupted, whichever came first.

Kai eventually stormed into the room, looking like an unimpressed mother, holding a stirring spoon, which was probably the funniest thing Mira had seen this week.

“Please turn that down! I can’t even hear myself think!” Kai’s face was red and he looked genuinely annoyed.

Mira would have been worried if this didn’t happen all the time. She laughed and Adam joined.

“You just can’t appreciate great music,” Adam said smugly.

“It’s just a bunch of screeching!” Kai counterattacked. 

“Heathen!” Mira interjected. 

Kai opened his mouth as if to say something but the blaring of the smoke alarm interrupted whatever he planned to say, his face went ghost white. 

“You assholes!” Kai exclaimed as he ran back into the kitchen, visibly concerned.  
For a moment, Mira looked apprehensive, _this_ definitely wasn’t routine. 

Mira glanced over at Adam who was covering his ears, wincing. 

“Adam...?” Mira extended a hand towards him gently but he waved it away dismissively.

Mira quickly turned off the music but found herself missing the sound echo through the empty household. At least the smoke alarm filled the silence in its place.

The two teenagers found themselves peeking into the kitchen nervously, trying to make sure everything was alright.

“Everything’s fine, it was just a small fire,” Kai was visibly shaking, Mira noticed, but no one commented on it.

“You might have to wait a little longer, though...” Kai trailed off, already grabbing different ingredients from the shelves.

“Do you want us to—“ Adam began but it was cut off by a bitter laugh from Kai.

“God no! You guys are horrible cooks! You’d fuck up everything!” If Kai was anything, it was definitely brutally honest.

“Okay, okay!” Mira said, grinning. She took Adam’s hand (she had already trained herself not to take his wrist) and dragged him away from the danger zone.

They played their music quieter this time, though there really wasn’t much of a difference since they only turned it down a few notches, much to Kai’s frustration.

“You have no idea how good your food is, Kai,” Mira complimented as she stuffed a forkful into her mouth.

Kai laughed softly, “Oh, I do, you tell me every time I come over,” he picked at his food and glanced over at Adam to look for a reaction from him about his food but he was too busy stuffing his face.

Adam looked up and noticed Mira and Kai staring, giving them an embarrassed smile, “It’s good,” is all he said.

They laughed and joked until they lost track of time and suddenly, it was almost eleven P.M. 

“Are you guys sure you’ll be alright?” Mira asked worriedly, usually, if Adam and Kai stayed this late, they would spend the night.

However, Mira’s mother specifically asked for them to not stay over that night, reasoning that she’d be very tired and she ‘didn’t need another violent pillow fight at two A.M.’

“We’ll be alright, Mira,” Adam reassured her.

“Yeah! We’ll text you when we’re home safe,” Kai added.

Mira grinned, they were all so protective of each other. They had a separate chat just for reassuring messages that one of them had gotten home safe and other things like that.

As soon as the door shut, a deafening silence immediately fell over the house. Mira was honestly shocked by the suddenness of it all.

She didn’t understand why it had been affecting her so much. 

Originally, Mira chocked it up to all the stress of the past few weeks.

What with winning _The Hollow_ , Adam’s family problems, and now, Mira’s mother was working so much that she practically lived at her office. 

Maybe she was being selfish, but she hated it. Mira and her mom always spent anytime they could together. 

Mira noticed that she had become more distant after Mira had come back from winning the game. They’d do less stuff together and whenever Mira tried to plan something to do, her mother told Mira she was too busy.

That’s when Mira began to become painfully aware of the silence. She would think about it all the time and it was infuriating her.

Listening to music on her iPod never helped, because she was still _alone_.

Yeah, that was the problem, she was alone and she had no idea how to cope with that.

Mira turned up the volume on her iPod, trying her hardest to block out her thoughts. She hadn’t even realized she’d taken out her iPod and picked a playlist. 

It started with a shitty song from 2010 but Mira could hardly bring herself to care at the moment.

There was a click from the door opening but at that point, Mira had the volume at max, which was probably damaging her ears. 

Mira was startled when she turned and saw her mother opening the door. She seemed hesitant.

“Mira? I wanted to let you know I’m home,” her voice was soft and kind, which perfectly matched her personality, but something was off. 

Before her mother could close the door, Mira made a move towards the door, “Mom, wait,” which made her mother stop in her tracks.

She turned a questioning gaze onto Mira which made her gut twist with anxiety.   
“I was just wondering how your day was,” Mira looked anywhere but her mother. 

“It was okay,” was her response. They fell into that dreaded silence but neither dared move. Mira’s mother looked solemnly at her. 

“Have you eaten?” She asked.

Mira nodded, _Man, this is awkward_ , she thought. _What happened? This never happened before._

“Are you...?” Mira always asked this question every time, she knew the answer by heart.

‘ _Are you working tomorrow?_ ’

“Yes. Same time.”

“Are you working late?” was Mira’s followup question. 

“Maybe,” Mira’s mother answered, closing the door before Mira could get any more questions out. 

Mira fell back onto the bed, frustrated, she clutched the sheets as hard as she could. She couldn’t let herself cry, she didn’t have the time and energy for that. 

For the next week, it was all the same. Mira took any chance to be with Kai and Adam, and frankly? It was starting to piss Kai off.

Mira would either call them over to her house or ask them if they wanted to hang out at a diner. 

Kai had enough and finally snapped.

“Mira, I can’t keep doing this. I’m exhausted,” Kai said into the phone. “I have my own problems and I can’t keep running around with you because you’re _bored_.”

His words hit Mira like a ton of bricks. How do you react to that? Tears, apparently. 

Kai couldn’t see them but he could definitely tell immediately. 

“Mira, no, I didn’t mean—“ He tried to take back what he’d said but it had already done its damage.

“N—no, Kai, I get it,” Mira said, wiping her tears, _you shouldn’t be crying_ , she said to herself.

“Mira, is something else wrong?” Kai asked hesitantly.

Mira hiccuped, _it’s now or never, maybe he’ll understand how you feel_. It didn’t take much for Mira to spill the beans.

“I’m glad you’re okay...” Kai started then cringed, “...as you could ever be,” he finished.

Mira didn’t say anything, hoping for guidance from Kai.

“I think you should talk to your mom. Let her know how you feel, y’know?” Kai suggested, there was silence then a small crash in the background, earning a small ‘ _fuck_ ’ from him.

“Well, Yeah! I could have gotten that advice from anyone!” Mira said, only half joking. 

“Hey, I’m trying to help!” Kai shot back, “just...try?” 

“Okay,” Mira said after a small silence.  
“Let me know how it goes, I gotta go, Adam’s calling,” Kai said nonchalantly.

Mira nodded, “Talk to you soon,” she said before hanging up.

Not exactly the conversation she wanted, but it helped nonetheless. 

Later that night, Mira was sat on the couch reading a book with a topic she didn’t even care about. She was only there because there was no way her mother could get by without being seen by Mira in that spot. 

Mira was ready to get some answers, even if she may not like what she hears.   
The sound of the front door opening and closing still startled Mira, however.

“Mira,” her mother said, almost shocked, “what are you doing down here so late?” 

“I need to know some things... and you need to know some things too,” Mira answered, acting confident even if she wasn’t. 

“Dear, please, I’m tired.”

“Mom, it’s _important_ ,” Mira said in desperation. Her mother blinked once and then slowly sat down beside her. 

Mira thought confessing how she felt to Kai was kind of like a test run, but confessing to her mom? This was the real deal.

“I need you to listen carefully, Mom,” As soon as Mira started, she couldn’t stop herself. She just word vomited every feeling she was feeling.

“I had no idea you felt like that,” is all her mother had to say.

Mira was shaking and her lip was quivering as she tried to stop herself from crying.

“I’m so sorry, dear...” She said, staring at Mira with sorrowful eyes. 

Mira let a tear slip and her mother immediately wiped it away with her thumb before pulling her daughter in for a hug.

“Why...why have you been ignoring me?” Mira asked weakly, “Do you hate me now? What did I do?” She was shaking horribly in her mother’s arms.

“It’s quite silly, really. I feel awful thinking about it now,” Mira’s mother tightened her grip around Mira for a moment before breaking the hug, yet still keeping comforting hands on both her shoulders. 

“I never intended to ignore you, not ever,” She started, “it just... happened.”

Mira furrowed her brows, “Then _why_?”

“Well...” Her mother started her story, “when I saw you in that game, you seemed so grownup, I was so proud of you.” Mira managed a small smile.

“But then I started thinking,” She bit her lip nervously, “if you’re so grownup, you’re going to want to hang out with your friends more and less with me.”

Mira listened carefully as her mother told her side of the story.

“That sounds selfish, I know, but...” now she was the one avoiding eye contact with Mira, “I also thought that since you’re so grownup, you’ll start liking me less because... I’m not your real mother.”

Mira laughed, she actually laughed, “That’s so dumb,” she stopped laughing and gave her mother a soft smile, wiping the rest of her tears, “You’re the best, and only mother I could ever ask for. Biological or not.”

This time, Mira initiated the hug between her and her mother. For the first time in awhile, they sat in a _comfortable_ silence. 

After a few minutes, Mira hesitantly asked, “Are you...?” She trailed off.

Another period of silence followed the question before Mira’s mother smiled and said, “No, I think I deserve a day off.”

As soon as her mother retired to her bedroom, Mira grabbed her phone, texting updates to Kai and Adam.

‘ _Everything went good._ ’ Mira sent.

Almost immediately, Kai started to type and Adam did soon afterwards.

‘ _Good!!!_ ’ Kai responded, excitedly, making Mira chuckle.

‘ _This deserves a celebration. Tomorrow?_ ’ Adam asked right after. 

Mira grinned as she typed her response, already feeling giddy.

‘ _Nope, busy, see you guys later._ ’


End file.
